Press Releases

Basketball

Men’s College Basketball: Exclusive Coverage of Every NIT Game across ESPN Networks

ESPN’s exclusive coverage of the entire 77th National Invitation Tournament (NIT) will begin with all 16 first-round games across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 over Tuesday, March 18, and Wednesday, March 19. The networks will follow the first round with all eight second-round matchups (March 20-24), the four quarterfinals (March 25-26), both semifinals (April 1) and Championship (April 3).

Every NIT game on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3 will also be available via WatchESPN, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app, through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members and on Apple TV to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.

The 32-team field for the oldest tournament in college basketball was announced Sunday, March 16, during the ESPNUNIT Selection Show and includesteams representing 23 conferences. The field includes 23 programs with at least 20 wins, and 13 teams that qualified automatically for winning their regular-season conference title without receiving an NCAA Championship bid. The top seeds are Florida State, Minnesota, St. John’s and SMU.

St. John’s, making its NIT record 30th appearance, is one of six teams in the 2014 event that appeared in the 2013 NIT: Florida State, Indiana State, Louisiana Tech, Robert Morris and Southern Miss. Florida Gulf Coast, which reached the Sweet Sixteen in last season’s NCAA Championship, will be one of three teams to play in the NIT for the first time: High Point and Utah Valley.